Mickey Munley steps down, department understaffed

In early August, Mickey Munley ’87 resigned as Vice President of College and Alumni Relations. His decision was guided by future career goals and a desire to allow new ideas to influence the Alumni office.

His departure brings the total vacancies in the College and Alumni Relations office to four. Other vacant positions include Director of Alumni Relations, Assistant Director of Alumni Relations, and Director of the Pioneer Fund. The Department of College and Alumni Relations oversees fundraising and community-building events, among other responsibilities.

In Munley’s absence, Vice President for Institutional Planning Marci Sortor is also serving as Acting Vice President of College and Alumni Relations. However, she does not have time to work in two Vice President positions at once.

“I can put in six and a half hours in one office and six and a half hours in another office and still not be doing a full day’s work,” Sortor said.

Director of Donor Relations Meg Bair is now also serving as Acting Director and Assistant Director of Alumni Relations, according to Sortor.

Except for the Director of the Pioneer Fund, the job searches have been postponed as Grinnell adjusts to the leadership of new President Raynard Kington. According to Sortor, it remains to be seen how much he will be involved in the process, but the staff is waiting to understand the new goals of the college before filling the positions.

Though Munley no longer holds his position, he is assisting Kington and the College and Alumni Relations staff until his replacement arrives.

“I am not the VP and I am not working full time,” he said, “but I’ve agreed to sort of stay available as needed in a consultant basis for the office, for the college, for the president during the transition.”

Munley is proud of the steps that have been taken to both assert Grinnell’s presence in the national media and establish a sense of tradition on campus. He is responsible for establishing the Medallion Ceremony and the Brass Ring ceremony although he maintains that his favorite aspect of the job was talking to other alums.

“What I have that most people don’t ever get is the perspective of not just ten or fifteen or twenty other alums but hundreds of alums on what makes their Grinnell education important to them personally,” Munley said. “That has made me in turn appreciate mine.”

Munley will continue to live in Grinnell with his family.